


A Kingdom For A Horse

by Vauvenal



Category: Thor (2011)
Genre: Fluff, M/M, More Fluff, lovebirds, or something like that, sleipnir's parents are cute as fuck, uh I mean love horses
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2012-05-12
Updated: 2012-06-16
Packaged: 2017-11-05 05:44:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 3
Words: 3,407
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/403059
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Vauvenal/pseuds/Vauvenal
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fill for a norsekink prompt.<br/>-<br/>Svaðilfari either was a shapeshifter or has somehow been turned into a man. He returns to Asgard to ask for Loki's hand because that's the honourable thing to do. Things get awkward.<br/>-</p><p>So, this is the basic plot of it, yes. Have fun. <3</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

A slow, careful knock on the door made Loki look up from his studies.

 

“Come in”, he said sternly, wondering what reason that gadfly – whoever it was – might have to disturb him at this time of day.

 

One of the servants slowly opened the door and entered the room.

The young woman did not dare to look at the God of Mischief, obviously she knew that she was disturbing him.

 

“Excuse me, my lord, I did not mean to interrupt you, but there is a man at the gate who is asking for an audience with you.”

 

Loki raised an eyebrow, then got up from his chair.

 

“Tell him I will be there in a moment. And now leave.”

 

The servant nodded hastily and left the room backwards, shutting the door quietly behind her.

 

The god sighed deeply. Obviously, this guest was a stranger, otherwise the servant would have told him his or her name. What should a stranger want from him? He grabbed his cloak and threw a quick glance into the mirror, before he stepped outside and headed for the huge gate that separated the city of Asgard from the rest of the world.

The man he met there seemed like he did not belong here; his clothes were ragged, the hair looked like it had been cleaned very quickly and without real effort, the only piece of this man that looked halfway clean was his face and the extraordinarily happy smile in the middle of it.

Loki raised an eyebrow.

 

“Good day. You are asking for an audience with me?”

 

The man laughed.

 

“No reason to be so formal, my dear!”

 

Figuring that if some random man dared to speak to him that way, he must have a very good reason. Maybe a meeting from a long time ago Loki forgot...?

 

“...who are you?”

 

“You don't recognize me?”

 

“Should I?”

 

Again, a horse-laugh of which Loki was not sure if he was actually laughing at him.

 

“Yes, you should. You should indeed. But let's not discuss that out here. Don't you know any manners here? You should at least offer me a seat and a drink.”

 

Loki understood that he would not find out what the stranger actually wanted if he did not do him that small favour.

 

He suppressed a resigned sigh and answered: “Then follow me.”

 

On their way to the parlour, Loki examined the man closer. He was a little smaller than himself, but more muscular, his black hair partially hanging in his face, covering parts of his dark-brown eyes.

Oddly familiar, those eyes, thought Loki, but he had no idea from where he knew them. The pupils seemed a little bit more wide than round, but maybe that was just his imagination.

Wait, was he staring? He quickly turned his eyes away from him, relieved that they had now reached the parlour where he offered the stranger a seat and waved one of the servants over to them.

 

“What would you like to drink? Mead?”

 

“No, just some water, please.”

 

“Then bring us one cup of water and one cup of mead.”

 

Once the servant had left them alone, Loki turned to the strange man who had been bothering him.

 

“Who are you?”, he repeated his question from before.

 

“You know me very well.”

 

“Stop wrapping yourself in secrets. I've never seen you, I don't know your name, I don't remember you from anywhere.”

 

“Oh, believe me, you have more than just seen me.”

 

With a smile and a small chuckle, the stranger tilted his head, and the same moment that he told Loki his name, the god knew where he had last seen those eyes.

 

“...Svaðilfari?”

 

“It took you long enough, dear.”

 

Svaðilfari's smile grew softer as he raised a hand to caress Loki's cheek – and got slapped away.

 

“I'm not your 'dear'. It has been over a hundred years since our last meeting. And now you come back here for...”, he furrowed his brows, “... why exactly are you here?”

 

As he answered, Svaðilfari did not look at him.

 

“For several reasons. I don't want to discuss them here. Somewhere more private maybe.”

 

Loki could have said so many things now.

 

He could have thrown this... man... horse... out of Asgard, he could have just denied his wish, but instead, he said: “...well then.”

 

After all, he did have a special relationship to him so he should at least hear him out. There would surely be a good reason for Svaðilfari to leave his master, to shift his shape into that of a human, to travel all the way to Asgard.

His thoughts were interrupted by the servant bringing their drinks, putting them on the small table.

Loki nodded at the woman, while Svaðilfari smiled politely and thanked her, taking a sip from his cup.

 

There was silence between them for a while, until Svaðilfari, looking for a way to start a conversation, said: “How is our child? Is it a boy or a girl?”

Loki looked to the side, then at Svaðilfari again and gave him a little, unsure smile.

 

“It's a boy. His name is Sleipnir.”

 

“Sleipnir... this sounds wonderful.”

 

Loki's smile broadened a little as he started to describe Sleipnir a little, how similar he was to his father, with the glistering black fur and the strong, but somewhat graceful eight legs.

 

“Eight?”

 

“Yes, eight. Don't ask me why or how. The only thing I know is that he really is incredibly fast.”

 

“He probably inherited my strength and your grace and agility”, said Svaðilfari, before he could stop himself. He looked away, blushing, not sure what to say now, while Loki's cheeks were bright red, too.

 

“You're... flattering me”, he slowly tried to regain his honour.

 

“I intended to.”

 

“And you're not making it any better.”

 

“I know... my dear.”

 

Somehow, Svaðilfari slowly regained the closeness he was used to when talking and interacting with Loki and somehow, Loki gave him some of this closeness back and let him into his private sphere a little more. He could not resist to smile a little as Svaðilfari called him 'dear', even though it still made him feel a little uncomfortable to let someone he had not seen for more than a century come so close to him. Was it because Svaðilfari now had taken a form Loki was more used to?

Or... was it because he had missed him without really understanding it?

 

“We should... go to a place where it's calm enough so you can tell me why you're here”, whispered Loki, his voice serious, but curious.

 

“...yes, I guess so.”


	2. Chapter 2

The closer they got to Loki's room, the more the nervousness between them rose. Svaðilfari could not resist looking over to Loki once in a while, but he quickly turned his gaze away whenever the other man noticed it. Loki opened the door, remaining silent until he asked Svaðilfari to come in. The other man just nodded and quickly followed the invitation, Loki entered the room as well, shutting the door behind him.

  
"Take a seat", he said, unconsciously avoiding the topics Svaðilfari wanted to talk about.

  
Svaðilfari sat on the comfortable looking couch in one of the corners of the room, while Loki sat next to him, trying not to get too close, but not to stay too far away from him at the same time.

  
"You... wanted to talk", he finally said, his voice more hoarse than he expected it to be.

  
"Yes. And you wanted to know why I'm here."

  
Svaðilfari arose from his seat, only to kneel down before Loki in a quick motion, the muscular, strong body shaking from a tension Loki did not understand.

  
"Loki", said Svaðilfari, then cleared his throat.

  
"Loki", he repeated, his voice now clear and loud, but still shaking, "I want to give you something. I missed you a lot the last one-hundred years, and I couldn't forget you. I love you, Loki."

  
His voice shook even more with every word he said, the last few words coming out syllable by syllable and it seemed like he had forgotten the 'gift' already after he managed to stop himself in his stream of words.   
Loki just looked down on him, watching the strong shoulders he had seen pulling heavy carriages shaking weakly and feebly. He saw the fast, proud stallion he had met before, kneeling on the ground, not daring to raise his head to look at the man he just confessed to.

  
"You... you love me?"

  
Still? After all those years you did not forget me?

  
"Yes Loki, yes, I love you, I've never stopped thinking about you, I..."

  
As he realized what he had just said, what a fool he had been that he had believed Loki would accept him as a mate again, he rose up quickly and whispered: "I should go. I'm sorry I wasted your time. I'm sorry I've been such a fool. I-"

  
"Svaðilfari."

  
"...y-yes?"

  
"Stay."

  
Svaðilfari looked at him now, not understanding - until he saw the impression in Loki's eyes, not the same, but similar to the way Loki had looked at him... back then.

  
"Stay with me. I'm... I have..."

  
And there it was, one of the rare moments where Loki did not know what to say now, where all words failed him and he just grabbed the sleeve of Svaðilfari's shirt.

  
"You can't just go now after saying such things and think I could just forget about you."

  
Svaðilfari swallowed hard and nodded, too captured by Loki's voice and face and what he had said to just run away.

  
"So... what does that mean?"

  
"I don't know if I can return your feelings. I don't know yet", whispered Loki, "But I don't want you to leave me yet, either."

  
And once in a hundred years, there was true honesty shining in Loki's bright green eyes, the same look he had given Svaðilfari during the days they had spent together.

 

“Then... then I'll stay.”

 

Because it makes you happy. And I want you to be happy.

 

“Thank you.”

 

They sat there for awhile, awkward silence between them.

Of course, there came the moment in which one of them - Svaðilfari – could not take it anymore and just took the risk, wrapped his arms around Loki, his head resting heavily on the other man's shoulder, one hand grabbing his coat, the other buried in his hair, messing up the neatly straightened strands.

He felt Loki's body stiffen under his hands, but he could not let go now, he was too overwhelmed by the feelings he had missed for such a long time. Loki was completely dazed for a moment, he could not react, could not even move, could just give in to the warmth surrounding him, to the smell that tickled his nose, the smell of meadows in the cold winter sun, the smell of the first flowers peeking their heads through the frosty ground, the smell of horses running freely through a fir forest, the vibration of their hooves letting some needles rain from the trees, covering the ground behind them.

A storm of memories rushed through his brain, memories of happiness of all kinds, all caused by the faint smell that came from Svaðilfari's body and coat.

The second Svaðilfari wanted to let go of him, scared that he might had broken something, Loki raised his arms and finally embraced him as well, his nose buried in the curve of his neck to inhale that wonderful smell. He felt warm and comfortable in the arms of the other man, pressing his small frame tightly against the strong body that felt like a shelter to him right now.

Very well aware of the fact that Svaðilfari was not able to hear him, he whispered a muffled 'I still love you' into the rough fabric of the coat, while the other man just held him close and kissed his cheek.

Loki did not complain.

 


	3. Chapter 3

Of course, it was only a matter of time until someone had to notice the odd, ruffly, not exceptionally handsome strange man wandering around in the corridors near Loki's chambers.   
It was Thor who did so and, after watching the man for a while, could not hold back his curiosity. He did not ask Svaðilfari himself, though, but he figured that Loki would know who he was, with him always roaming around close to Loki's room.

“Who is he?”, he asked when they sat together at dinner.

“Who do you mean?”

“That odd man who's been traipsing around here for a while now, always somewhere near your room.”

Loki laughed.   
“What, you mean yourself?”

“Don't make fun of me, brother, I'm serious!”

“I didn't know you were capable of that.”  
Loki chuckled deeply, then he went silent and sighed.  
“...it's Svaðilfari.”

“Who?”

“Svaðilfari”, repeated Loki, letting the name roll from his tongue slowly and with care, “Sleipnir's father.”

“...Sleipnir's father? What is he doing here? Why does he look like a human and not a horse?”

“Visiting his mate. He shifted shapes to do so.”

“And who's this 'mate' you speak of, if I may know?”

“Don't you remember? I 'disappeared' for a few months after helping father out when he was about to lose that bet with the giant. And the time I reappeared, a foal had mysteriously found its way into the stables.”

Thor blinked, frowned and then blinked again as he connected the clues Loki had given him.  
“You're Sleipnir's... uh... mother?”

“Yes. Is that a problem?”

“No... I mean... really not, but... and he's his father?”

“You don't have to repeat everything I said, Thor”, said Loki quietly, then he looked directly in Thor's eyes.   
“Do not tell father or anyone else. Not yet. First, I need to sort things out with him.”

Thor just nodded. The look in his brother's eyes wasn't threatening or anything, it was more like a hidden plea in there; he really seemed worried, almost scared of what could happen if the others would find out about it the wrong way.

Later, Loki and Svaðilfari were sitting in Loki's room, Svaðilfari eating some plain bread Loki sneaked from the table for him.  
After Svaðilfari had finished his meal, he turned to Loki, smiling carefully.

“Loki?”

“Yes?

“My son... Sleipnir... can I see him?”

Loki could not hold back a laugh. He had feared Svaðilfari would ask something personal, something about their relationship, something that would have been very hard to answer.   
“Of course you can.”

“Where is he?”

“Down in the stables, safe and sound.”

“So... he's not free?” 

Svaðilfari seemed sad and worried as he asked that and Loki swallowed hard.  
“No. I fear he is not.”

Still, Loki led Svaðilfari down to the stables, to the one in the back where Sleipnir lived. He was asleep when they reached him, his flanks rising and falling slowly, soft breaths moving the hay in front of his nostrils. Svaðilfari could not help but smile at the sight of his son, thinking of the way his mother looked back then, comparing them. Sleipnir had Loki's slender ears and the shining, perfect black hooves, while the strong muscles in his eight legs and the soft shine of his fur came from Svaðilfari's side of the family.

“He's... beautiful.”

“Yes... he is.”

Svaðilfari smiled softly, making a sound similar to a neigh. Sleipnir immediately raised his head and at the very moment he identified Svaðilfari as his father by instinct, he got up as fast as he could and nudged him, neighing loudly and happily.  
Svaðilfari gave a loud, happy laugh, embracing the stallion's head, kissing his forehead, whispering into his ear: “I'm so happy to finally see you.”

A while later the three of them were standing on the seemingly endless meadows of Asgard, rich, green grass all around them  
Or rather, Loki was standing. Sleipnir was running, neighing loudly while throwing his head back and forth in glee, Svaðilfari trying to keep up with his son, laughing, sometimes stumbling and jokingly pulling Sleipnir's mane whenever he could get hold of it. The horse raised his front legs, standing on two of his hind legs, proud, his fur shining, legs kicking the air and the look in his eyes seemed to say: Are you proud of me, father?  
Loki watched them from afar, smiling softly. He had not seen his son this happy since... since when? He could not remember any time where he had seen Sleipnir like this.  
And suddenly, he felt sorry. There had been no other way besides giving Sleipnir to Odin as a gift, otherwise not one single Aesir would have forgiven what Loki had done before... but still, Sleipnir was a prisoner.  
As Sleipnir and Svaðilfari returned from their playtime, they looked happier than ever, even though Svaðilfari seemed very exhausted.

“Had fun?,” asked Loki, trying to sound calm and happy.

Svaðilfari and Sleipnir just looked at each other and then Svaðilfari laughed and nodded, gave Loki a sudden, tight hug.

“Thank you for letting me see him. Thank you for letting me stay here. Thank you for everything, my dear.”

He gave Loki another small kiss on the cheek while Sleipnir nudged his parents and snorted silently.

The next days turned out to be quite relaxing. Loki somehow managed to keep Svaðilfari from everyone else's eyes without imprisoning him in his rooms and they just enjoyed each other's presence. Still, Loki had to notice that Svaðilfari seemed nervous, unsure, bothered by something Loki did not understand.  
So, after a while, he could not take it any longer.

“Svaðilfari?”

“Yes?”

“I.. have to ask you something. No, actually I think that you want to ask me something.”

Svaðilfari avoided eye-contact with Loki, fidgeting a little before he slowly, quietly said: “There's something I want to show you. Something I want to give to you.”

“And... what would that be?”

Without another word, Svaðilfari got up to get his coat, rummaging around in the pockets before pulling out a small, wooden box.  
He approached Loki slowly, carefully now, as if he was worried of scaring a little animal.

“Loki,” he started, voice and fingers shaking, “I know... I know this is not according to the tradition of your people. I know what I'm going to do might lead to you throwing me out of your room and everyone else throwing me out of Asgard, but...”  
He opened the box, taking the small metal object inside in his hand.  
Not daring to look Loki in the eye, he got down on his knees, holding the item in the palm of his hand.

“Loki... it... I...” And here his voice failed him, all the words he had thought about so carefully in advance, suddenly disappeared and let him sit there on his knees.

Loki recognized the shape at once.  
The small brass ring was shaped like a spiral, made to loop around its bearer's finger to never let go. One end was decorated with the stylized shape of Mjölnir, carefully carved in the surface of the shining material.  
He felt his lower jaw drop a little as he understood what that meant.  
“You came all the way here for this?”

The words sounded way more aggressive than he wanted them to sound like and he shook his head, squinting his eyes, but it was already too late.  
Svaðilfari whimpered, trembling.  
“Then... I guess I should go...”

He closed the hand with the ring and carelessly put it into his pocket, not bothering to put it back into the protecting box, but Loki grabbed his shoulder before he could move any more and knelt down before him.  
“Svaðilfari. Svaðilfari, look at me, please.”

The other man just shook his head. Loki grabbed the hand which was still holding the ring, drawing it towards him and slowly pulling each limp finger away, opening the fist.  
Gently, he took the ring into his hand, feeling the warmth of it, the warmth of Svaðilfari's body.

“It's alright. I'm sorry. I was just... surprised, that is all.”

Now Svaðilfari finally raised his head, his expression a mixture of disbelief and hope.

“You can stay. I want you to stay. I just... please. Please give me a bit of time to think about this.”

The reaction to these words was a weak smile and a crushing hug that made Loki gasp in surprise.

“You shall have all the time in the world.”


End file.
